SAN DIEGO — This is Kerry Rhodes’ preference. Not facing the Patriots. Or the Ravens. Or anyone else.

The Colts. This is what Rhodes wanted. Apparently his teammates wanted it, too.

“We want this challenge. We didn’t want nobody else. We wanted to play Indy,” Rhodes said after the Jets’ 17-14 upset of the Chargers. “We want to show everybody that we can beat them with all their guys in.”

That’s something the Jets didn’t do last time, as everybody on the NFL-following planet knows. Dec. 27 in Indianapolis, the Jets’ playoff hopes would have ended if they lost to the Colts. And in the third quarter, they trailed 15-10. But Colts coach Jim Caldwell pulled Peyton Manning and Co., and the Jets pulled out a 29-15 triumph.

Now comes the rematch, with all the Colts playing.

“Everybody kind of thinks they let us win that one,” Shonn Greene said. “But it is what it is, and we’ll find out next week.”

Darrelle Revis said, “Peyton has to play the whole game. [He] isn’t sitting out the third quarter. We know we’ll see him the whole game and we’ll see their starters the whole game.”

That’s assuming Rex Ryan’s wish isn’t again granted.

“I don’t know if Santa Claus is going to be that good to me again,” said Ryan, who jokingly asked Santa for the Colts to sit all of their stars. “I will say it: I’d like to see Peyton Manning not play this week.”

One thing the Jets pointed out yesterday was that even with the Colts playing all their stars into the third quarter, they weren’t routing the Jets.

“They pulled their starters halfway through the third and they were only up [five] points,” Braylon Edwards said. “We could care less on who plays this game. We’re on the steamroll train and we’re happy. We’re happy that people don’t give us a chance or don’t respect us or they go out here and say that we don’t deserve to be in the playoffs. Each week we’re showing different.”

Calvin Pace said, “The pressure ain’t on us. It really isn’t. When you’re not supposed to be there you can let it all hang out. When you’re the No. 1 seed and you’ve got the first-round bye and you’re 14-2 or whatever, they got the pressure. We’re just going in and playing. Just riding the wave.”

Also, the Jets are thrilled America might have preferred a Colts-Chargers showdown. Or a Colts-Anyone showdown.

Ryan said, “We’re just fortunate to come out on top and we’ll see what happens in the matchup that probably nobody wanted, but too bad. … Here we come.”